Each year, Historic New England awards small grants to one small or mid-sized nonprofit in each New England state for community preservation projects. Read on to learn more about the program (now accepting applications!) and its recent awardees.
Historic New England’s awards programs honor organizations and individuals who make our region’s rich history accessible to broad audiences. The Herbert and Louise Whitney Fund for Community Preservation makes one $1,250 grant annually to small to and mid-sized heritage organizations in each of New England’s six states.
The Community Preservation Grant is named in honor of Herbert and Louise Whitney, who were deeply invested in the preservation and interpretation of New England’s history. The Whitneys were particularly involved in the stewardship of the Bishop family farm in North Woodstock, Connecticut. The property is now a part of Historic New England’s Preservation Easement Program.
The aim of the Herbert and Louise Whitney Fund for Community Preservation is to support telling diverse stories about our communities to create a more comprehensive and inclusive narrative of New England’s history for future generations. Since 2011, award recipients have received assistance with projects focusing on accessibility, diversity, education, acquisition of supplies, and more.
Last year’s awardees demonstrate the wide range of important work for which the Community Preservation grant can be used:
Rhode Island Black Heritage Society received funds to repair the only existing sign that commemorates God’s Little Acre—the historically Black section of the Common Burial Ground in Newport, Rhode Island.
Roth-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museum in Massachusetts was awarded a grant to complete a portion of their multi-year accessibility project. The organization developed an app-based audio and visual component to their tour and translated their tour into Spanish and Portuguese.
New Hampshire’s Manchester Historic Association used the funding to hire an architectural historian to conduct a building and significance study for the Samantha Plantin House. The house was built by Manchester’s first Black female landowner and the grant allowed the organization to begin the process of having it listed on the New Hampshire State Register of Historical Places.
Old Stone House Museum and Historic Village in Vermont was awarded funding to conserve a paper lithograph included in their permanent exhibition, In a Different Hue: Race and Representation. The exhibition explores conflicting historical narratives and racial stereotypes in the history of Orleans County and the United States as a whole.
New England Civil War Museum in Connecticut received a grant to fabricate interpretive panels on the 29th Regiment Connecticut Infantry, as well as to seek research materials to create a resource for visiting researchers. The 29th Connecticut was an all-Black regiment instrumental to many Union successes.
Maine Museum of Innovation, Learning and Labor used the funds to print labels and signage and supply materials for Labor—The Visible and the Unseen. The 2024 exhibition delves into modern perceptions about labor through the exploration of immigration and identity via local stories.If you are interested in applying for the Herbert and Louise Community Preservation Grant in 2024, the application is now open! Funding priority will be given to small and mid-size 501(c)3 organizations proposing inclusive heritage preservation projects are inclusive and for which a grant of this size will impact the project’s success.
If you are interested in applying for the Herbert and Louise Whitney Fund Community Preservation Grant in 2024, the application is now open and closed on July 31, 2024! Funding priority will be given to small and mid-size 501(c)3 organizations proposing inclusive heritage preservation projects are inclusive and for which a grant of this size will impact the project’s success.
Written by Rachel Farago, Preservation Services Manager, Central New England
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